Since then, several attempts to mitigate the crisis have been mobilized, including Spain’s introduction of a digital nomad visa at the start of 2023, when Spain joined 12 other EU countries offering visas for remote workers. Incentivizing highly qualified workers to relocate to the country’s rural areas could help Spain combat both rural population decline and overtourism in urban hubs like Barcelona.
Dr. Prithwiraj Choudhury, an associate professor at Harvard Business School whose research concentrates on the changing geography of work, tells Condé Nast Traveler: “Digital nomads can create value for their host communities through consumption, community volunteering, entrepreneurship, connections, and mentoring, however, this requires an active process of making connections between digital nomads and locals.”
As opposed to parachuting wealthy residents in, Live in Ambroz intends to court digital nomads who can foster these deeper commitments to their new communities. “If successful, they could literally change the country, its economy, and its love-hate relationship with tourism,” Patricia Palacios, co-founder of the travel blog España Guide, tells Traveler. “Hopefully the Ambroz Valley will be successful and set an example for many other rural areas to copy.”
How does the program work?
Under the program, up to 200 eligible digital nomads will receive grants meant for “available housing, arable land, and everything necessary to expedite their arrival.”
Spanish authorities told Euronews that the distribution of funds depends on the demographic information of the recipient: Women under 30 years old relocating to towns with populations under 5,000 residents will receive €10,000 upfront, or $11,085, while everyone else will receive €8,000, or $8,868. After the minimum term of two years, the former will receive an additional installment of €5,000, or $5,541, if they elect to stay for another year, while the latter will receive €4,000, or $4,433.
If accepted into the program, recipients will have three months to register with an Ambroz Valley municipality for a padrón certificate, a necessary local record of residence. After obtaining a padrón, they will have one month to request payment from the first grants, which will be transferred in a single transaction.
Who is eligible?
Eligible applicants must fit the following three criteria, per Euronews:
- You can not have already resided in Extremadura for any time in the past six months.
- You must have be a legal resident in Spain and have a foreign identity number, though you may be a foreign national. Non-EU nationals must first obtain Spain’s digital nomad visa and official residency before they can apply to the Live in Ambroz program.
- You must work remotely in the tech sector, specifically, “through the exclusive use of media and IT systems, telematics, and information fields.”
How to apply
Spanish authorities say the official opening date for applications will be around mid-September, according to the Euronews report. The applications will be submitted through the Extremadura General Electronic Access Point (prospective applicants must submit their digital certificate of residency or electronic Spanish ID card to the platform). Additionally, an official document from your home country or current region of Spain is required to certify your residency, as well as approval from your employer to work remotely in Extremadura. Self-employed applicants will need to submit detailed documentation of the terms and conditions of their professional remote work. Documents that are not in Spanish must also have a sworn legal translation certified by a professional. Successful applicants will be notified within 3 months.
